Introduction: The post below is a transcript of a speech delivered as a part of an elocution competition ‘Speak Up’ organized by the Bombay Chartered Accountants Society (‘BCAS’) in the year 2015. While the circumstances at the time may have undergone tremendous changes, my views certainly have not. This International Women’s Day 2020, I hope that each one of us takes one step forward towards ensuring gender equality.
It is extremely heartening that the Indian society, which is historically known as patriarchal is witnessing an upheaval of sorts with feminism – an ideology propagating equal rights to women vis – à – vis men gaining momentum and being seen as a movement altogether.
We are all witnesses to an activist seeking entry to various places of worship where women are not traditionally allowed to enter and gaining substantial level of success in doing so. We have also seen demands for the freedom to choose what to wear and the freedom to travel late nights without being judged. While these aspects are necessary, are they worthy of being accorded topmost priority to ensure that both genders are treated equally? Is it really imperative that action be taken to ensure that these demands are fulfilled without paying heed to the other growing forms of malice?
According to me, no! It disappoints me immensely to say that these demands have only led to people supporting these causes and being self-proclaimed ‘feminists’ while ignoring the larger issues at hand. Unfortunately, ‘feminism’ in its new form is not an ideology but a mere tag that people confer unto themselves in an attempt to look ‘cool’!
In a country where dowry deaths, honor killings, female foeticide and infanticide, rape and other forms of violence have increased to an extent so as to render them commonplace, the aforesaid demands should ideally not form the primary priority. Active intervention is being taken in respect of entry to religious places where crowds are going head-to-head with police forces and what is being done to counter violence against women is candle-light marches and online petitions?! The feeling of helplessness I experience when I attempt to think of alternative courses of action and fail time and again is unnerving!
Feminism is a concept that I understand as something through which I would be seeking equal rights for me and my sister, for my mother and my father. Nothing less, nothing more. It is due to this that I feel disappointed by the fact that feminism would “win” if my sister is allowed to wear the clothes she wants and travel late at nights, but our family would still feel threatened with the danger of potentiality of violence against her in the form of eve-teasing, molestation and rape and even the extremity of human trafficking looming large.
For me, feminism would indeed win when all these dangers are eradicated. For people who advocate taking baby steps to achieve long-term success, this struggle has been for centuries, presumably even millenniums. The time is now to break open the bastions, bring down the barriers and win the mighty war. Once the war is won, the battles would be won automatically.
To quote a line from the Manusmriti:
यत्र नार्यस्तु पूज्यन्ते रमन्ते तत्र देवता:। यत्रैतास्तु न पूज्यन्ते सर्वास्तत्राफला: क्रिया:।
Wherever women are honoured, divinity blossoms. Where they are dishonoured, even the most noble action remains unfruitful.
It is due to this reason that I opine that a woman who might be able to gain entry to a religious place after being a part of a struggle to do so would still not be liberated if she returns home to a barrage of verbal and physical abuse from her family. The divine powers might be happy when a woman gets the right to enter a religious place or to choose what to wear. But they would be happier when atrocities against women stops and women are treated as who they are – humans!
In conclusion, I feel that the new wave of ‘feminism’ is in essence ‘pseudo-feminism‘ as it focuses on issues that can be dismissed as trivial in the context of the greater issues at hand which can only be solved through harnessing the collective efforts and intellect of the society at large.
Words on a canvas 